Card cutting machine



Jan. 24, 1967 M. c. RUSSELL CARD CUTTING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 25, 1965 MALCOLM C. RUSSELL INVENTOR M: J W

Jan. 24, 1967 M. c. RUSSELL CARD CUTTING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Aug. 25, 1965 FIG. 4

FIG. 5

MALCOLM c. RUSSELL INVENTOR.

Jan. 24, 1967 M. c. RUSSELL CARD CUTTING MACHINE 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. 25, 1965 & T Wk l/ 23 FIG. /2

MALCOLM C. RUSSELL INVENTOR.

Jan. 24, 1967 M. c. RUSSELL CARD CUTTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 25, 1965 4 Sheets-Sheet 4 FIG. [5

MALCOLM C. RUSSELL INVENTOR FIG. /4

United States Patent 3,299,755 CARD CUTTING MACHINE Malcolm C. Russell, Leicester, Mass., assignor to Russell Mfg. Company, Leicester, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Filed Aug. 25, 1965, Ser. No. 482,637 13 Claims. (Cl. 83-94) This invention relates to a card cutting machine and, more particularly, to apparatus arranged to form a plurality of cards from a large printed sheet and to collate the cards for packaging.

In the manufacture of sets of game playing cards, it is common practice to print a complete set of cards on one large sheet and then to stamp the individual cards from the sheet. Usually, the die for stamping the cards provides for the die cutting of one row of cards at a time and the large sheet is presented by the machine to these dies one row at a time. In the past, these machines have operated quite slowly, however, and considerable difiiculty has been experienced in maintaining the dies in registry with the printed cards. These and other dlfilCllltlES experienced with the prior art devices have been obviated in a novel manner by the present invention.

It is, therefore, an outstanding object of the invention to provide a card cutting machine which is capable of operating at an extremely rapid rate of production.

Another object of this invention is the provision of a card cutting machine having a novel method of scrap disposal.

A further object of the present invention is the provision of a card cutting machine wherein no problem is presented by the individual cards sticking in the dies.

It is another object of the instant invention to provide a card cutting machine having a collating apparatus capable of very flexible and accurate operation in forming the cards into a pack.

It is a further object of the invention to provide a card cutting machine in which the sheet is fed into the machine very accurately to maintain registration of the dies with printed cards on the sheet.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a card cutting machine which may be operated at a very rapid rate without the cards sticking in the dies, without scrap interfering with die operation, without mistakes in collation of the pack of cards, and without mis-registry of the dies with the printed cards because of skewing at the time that the end of the card is approached in the cutting operation.

With these and other objects in view, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art, the invention resides in the combination of parts set forth in the specification and covered by the claims appended hereto.

The character of the invention, however, may be best understood by reference to one of its structural forms, as illustrated by the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a card cutting machine embodying the principles of the present invention,

FIG. 2 is a rear elevational view of the invention,

FIG. 3 is a front elevational view of the invention,

FIG. 4 is an enlarged view of the rear of the machine showing the scrap disposal apparatus,

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the scrap disposal apparatus taken on the line V-V of FIG. 4,

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view of the apparatus taken on the line VI-VI of FIG. 4,

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a feed portion of the machine,

FIG. 8 is another perspective view of the feed portion of the machine,

FIG. 9 is a plan view of the feed portion of the machine,

FIG. 10 is a sectional view of the apparatus taken on the line X-X of FIG. 9,

FIG. 11 is an enlarged vertical view of a portion of the invention taken on the line XI--XI of FIG. 9,

FIG. 12 is a sectional view of the apparatus taken on the line XIIXII of FIG. 9,

FIG. 13 is a view of a collating apparatus associated with the machine,

FIG. 14 is a vertical sectional view of a portion of the machine,

FIG. 15 is a somewhat schematic view of certain pneumatic apparatus associated with the invention, and

FIG. 16 is a vertical sectional view of a portion of the machine.

Referring first to FIG. 1, wherein are best shown the general features of the invention, it can be seen that the card cutting machine, indicated generally by the reference numeral 10, is provided with a frame 11 at the upper end of which is mounted a fly wheel 12 driven by an electric motor 13. At the front of the frame is located a feed apparatus 14 and at the rear a scrap disposal bin 15.

Referring to FIG. 2, it can be seen that the fly wheel is mounted on one end of a crankshaft 16. Mounted in the frame close to the scrap disposal bin 15 is a scrap disposal apparatus 17.

In FIG. 3, which is a view from the front of the machine, it can be seen that the crankshaft 16 has a central throw portion which operates through a connecting .rod 18 to move a die plate 19 vertically up and down in guides 21 and 22. The feed apparatus 14 is provided with a table 23 having a flat horizontal upper surface over which moves a carriage 24. Within a guard 25 lies a sprocket chain connecting the crankshaft 16 with a transverse shaft 26 passing under the table 23. A guard 27 (see FIG. 1) covers a sprocket which connects the shaft 26 back to the scrap disposal apparatus 17. A conduit 28 connected exteriorly to a source of pneumatic pressure is connected to the die plate 19 and is connected by branch conduits 29 and 31 to cylinders 32 and 33 for a purpose to be explained more fully hereinafter.

Referring now to FIGS. 4, 5, and 6, which best show the details of the scrap disposal apparatus 17, it can be seen that the sprocket contained in the guard 27 is attached to a transverse shaft 34 by a sprocket chain 35. On the shaft 34 is mounted a sprocket wheel 36 which is connected by a sprocket chain 37 to a sprocket wheel 38 keyed to a transverse shaft 39. On the shaft 39 is keyed a push arm 41 which is coveredwith a friction material such as a rubber sheet. The shaft 39 is mounted in bearings 42 and 43 which are mounted on the undersides of support channels 44 and 45. These support channels are bolted on the inside of the frame and extend parallel to one another longitudinally of the machine. The bearings are attached to the support members by bolts operating in longitudinal slots in the channels, thus permitting the position of the bearings and shaft to be adjusted. In order to provide for this adjustment, the sprocket chain 37 also passes over an idler sprocket wheel 46 mounted on the outer end of a crankarm 47, the other end of which is hingedly connected to a support member 48. The machine is provided with a table 49 extending through it from the front to the rear and having small rollers 51 extending slightly above the surface of the table.

Referring now to FIGS. 7, 8, and 9, which show the details of the feed apparatus, it can be seen that the table 23 has a flat horizontal surface over which the sheets are presented to the die cutting mechanism. Overlying the table is the carriage 24 which has at one side of the table two wheels 52 and 53 which support the carriage and permit it to move longitudinall of the table. At the other side, the carriage is slidably carried on a shaft 54 which is reciprocated by a connecting rod 55 operated from the shaft 26 which, it will be recalled, is driven by a sprocket chain lying within the guard 25 and connected to the crankshaft 16 of the machine. The rotating shaft 26 is also connected by gears to a shaft 56 extending longitudinally of the table 23 to drive a transverse shaft 57 at the outer end of the table. This shaft is mounted in bearings and carries a roller 59 which is rubber coated. Mounted in the table over the roller 59 is another roller 58 which is provided with a friction surface. The two rollers 58 and 59 are in tangential contact for feeding a sheet 61 into the machine. This sheet has been preprinted with the cards. In the preferred embodiment, there are five cards in a row and there are seven rows. Mounted on the underside of the carriage 24 are two mounting bars 62 and 63 whose lower surface is quite close to the upper surface of the table 23. These bars are mounted parallel to and spaced from one another and each one carries a plurality of dogs 64.

Referring to FIG. 11, which shows the connection of a dog 64 to a mounting bar 63, it should be noted that the mounting bar 63 is provided with a slot 65 to permit longitudinal adjustment of the hinge point of the dog 64. A pin 66 extends laterally of the bar 63 and resides in a slot 67 formed in the dog. The free end of the dog rests on the upper surface of the table 23 in position to engage the edge of the sheet 61. A leaf spring 68 maintains the dog 64 in its downward position.

In FIG. 12, it can be seen that the die plate 19 is provided with a plurality of cutting dies 69 which punch the cards by fitting into apertures 71 formed in the table 23. Overlying the table 23 in this vicinity is a strip plate 72 having an aperture 73. The strip plate is particularly evident in FIG. 8 and is provided with loop springs 74 mounted on its leading edge to keep the sheet 61 from skewing, particularly when the last row of cards is being punched.

FIGS. 14 and 15 show the details of an apparatus which assists in high speed operation of the machine. As has been described, the die plate 19 is slidable in guides and is moved up and down vertically by the crankshaft 16. Its lower surface is provided with five dies 69 which enter into the apertures 71 formed in the table 23. Each of the dies 69 is provided with a recess 75 in which is slidably mounted an ejector 76. Each ejector has a verticallyextending rod 77, all rods being connected to a cross-bar 78. The cross-bar is vertically slidable relative to the die plate 19 and, at one end, is provided with the cylinder 32 and, at the other end, with the cylinder 33. The cross-bar 78 is maintained in a normal upper position by springs 79 and 81 extending upwardly to an upper part of the die plate 19 and continually under tension. Extending from the cylinder 32 is the branch line 28 and from the cylinder 33 extends the branch line 31. These are connected to the conduit 29 leading to a normallyclosed valve 82 (see FIG. 15). This valve has an actuating handle 83. This handle is contacted by a finger 84 extending from a collar 85 which is keyed to the shaft 26. The location of this collar is shown in FIG. 5. The other side of the valve 82 is connected to a supply of air through a gauge 86, a pressure regulating valve 87, and a filter 88.

Referring to FIG. 13, it can be seen that the collating apparatus 89 consists of a collecting box 91 located at the lower end of five tracks 92, 93, 94, 95, and 96. The upper ends of the tracks are attached to the table below the apertures 71 and the table 23, as is evident in FIG. 14. Each track consists of two guide members extending parallel to one another and each [having a groove, the grooves facing toward one another-so that a card can slide down the track in the grooves. The upper ends of the track, of course, are in side-by-side relationship underlying the apertures 71. .However, at the lower end where they enter the box 91, they are in front-to-rear arrangement, so that the cards are collated in the particular order desired. The box 91 is constructed as a tray with an adjustable cover 97 whose angularity to the bottom of the tray can be adjusted so that the cards strike the bottom side of the box at a suitable angle. Furthermore, the end and bottom of the box are provided with notches 98, and the bottom edge of the cover 97 is provided with a notch 99 to permit the operator to remove the pack of cards. It is interesting to note that the cover 97 extends toward the lower end of the box, but does not reach it by a considerable amount.

The operation of the apparatms will now be readily understood in view of the above description. With the motor 13 in operation, the fly wheel 12 and the crankshaft 16 rotate in the usual manner. This causes the die plate 19 to be operated and moved up and down by the connecting rod 18. At the same time, the sprocket chain within the guard 25 drives the shaft 26. At the other end of the shaft 26 it operates through the connecting rod 55 and the bar 54 to move the carriage 24 back and forth along the top of the table 23. At the same time, the connection from the shaft 26 back through the sprocket chain 35 rotates the shaft 34 which, in turn, operates through the sprocket wheel 36, the sprocket chain 37, and the sprocket wheel 38 to rotate the shaft 39. It is evident, therefore, that the shaft 39 is rotated, the carriage 24 is recipnocated, and the die plate 19 is reciprocated, all in synchronization. The card sheet 61 has been introduced between the rollers 58 and 59 and proceeds across the surface of the table 23 toward the die plate 19. The dogs 64 are spaced along the mounting bars 62 and 63 at such a spacing that every time the carriage 24 reciprocates one of the dogs 64 engages the rear edge of the sheet 61 and moves it forward one card length. The synchronization of the carriage and the die plate 19 is such that, when the die plate 19 is in raised position, the carriage 24 moves the cards forwardly under the die plate. Then, the die plate moves downwardly and the dies 69 engage the portion of the sheet which lies in the narrow space between the table 23 and the stripper plate 72. The die 69 moves down through the aperture 73 in the stripper plate and through the aperture 71 in the table 23 which punches a card from the sheet. Actually, a row of five cards (in the preferred embodiment) is punched out with each stroke and they fall downwardly through their apertures 71. Each card resides in its respective track 92, 93, 94, 95,. and 96 of the collating apparatus 89 and slides down the track into the collecting box 91. During the next reciprocation of the die plate, the next row of the card sheet is moved under the dies and is punched out, so that the next set of five cards falls on top of the previous pack formed in the box 91. In the preferred embodiment, there would be seven rows and so this means that 35 cards would end up in the box 91 in a pre-determined, collated relationship. As the last roW is punched, and the dies are moved up out of the holes in the card sheet, the scrap thus formed is seized by the suitable rotation of the push arm 41. The arm pulls the scrap away from the punching portion of the die and projects it rearwardly into the scrap bin 15. The location of the shaft 39 is adjustable along the support chan nels 44 and 45 and can be adjusted so that the scrap will be contacted and thrown rearwardly by the push arm 41 at exactly the right part of the cycle. After the position of the bearings 42 and 43 have been adjusted along their respective support channels 44 and 45, the slack in the sprocket chain 37 is taken up by the idler wheel 46, which is always biased in an upward position by its spring 50. As the mounting bars 62 and 63 are reciprocated by the carriage 24, the dogs 64, of course, slide over the surface of the card sheet and the upper surface of the table 23. In the forward direction, however, one of the matching pairs of dogs engages the rear edge of the card sheet and carries it forward with the carriage. The

spring 68 guarantees that the dog is held in a very low position, particularly those dogs which are close to the stripper plate 72. Furthermore, the pin 66 in the slot 67 guarantees that the dog does not flip over into a backward position during high speed operation of the machine. The loop springs 94 press on the rear edges of the card sheet even when the last row of the sheet is being cut out. This assures that the card in this condition (when it is light because so many of the cards have been punched out) does not skew relative to the die 69 and bring about lack of registration between the dies and the cards printed on the surface of the card sheet. The stripper plate 72, of course, serves the purpose of permitting the die 69 to be drawn upwardly without carrying the card with it. The

stripper plate assures that the card remains in a low position on the table 23. At a suitable part of the cycle, the rotation of the shaft 26 brings the finger 84 into engagement with the actuating handle 83 of the valve 82 and causes air to flow to the cylinders 32 and 33. This air forces the cross-bar 78 downwardly carrying the rods 77 and the ejectors with it. The ejectors move downwardly and emerge from the recesses 75 just after the die 69 has finished cutting a card against the aperture 71. This throws the card away from the die very quickly so that the die can move back upwardly and there is no danger of the card being struck during the next cutting of the card sheet 61 by the dies.

It can be seen that the present machine is capable of very high speed operation because of the many features which have been included in the machine. For instance, the ejectors 76 assure that a given row of cards is thrown downwardly into the collating appartus and is out of the way so that the carriage 24 may move the card sheet forwardly very quickly ready for the next downward stroke of the die plate 19. At the same time, the loop springs 74 cooperate with the stripper plate 72 to assure that the cards do not become skewed in the machine and cause not only the formation of poor cards but also a fouling of the machine so that it has to be shut down and cleared. At the same time, the push arm 41 is accurately positioned to grasp the scrap the moment the last row of cards is punched from the card sheet 61. This assures that there need be no hesitancy in proceeding to punch out a set of cards from the next card sheet. It will be understood that the skeleton or scrap which remains from the card sheet (after the cards have all been punched out) has very little rigidity and it is not possible to use the leading edge of the following card to push it along through the machine. The construction of the dogs 67 assures that they constantly remain in contact with the table 23 and are, nevertheless, capable of riding over the top of the card sheet 61 to assure accurate feeding of the card sheet toward the die.

It is obvious that minor changes may be made in the form and construction of the invention without departing from the material spirit thereof. It is not, however, desired to confine the invention to the exact form herein shown and described, but it is desired to include all such as properly come within the scope claimed.

The invention having been thus described, what is claimed as new and desired to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A card cutting machine, comprising (a) a frame,

(b) a passageway extending through the frame,

(c) a die member mounted in the frame at one end of the passage and capable of reciprocatory motion in a direction at a right angle to the direction of the passage,

((1) a shaft rotably mounted in the frame at the other end of the passage,

(e) a push arm mounted on the shaft and rotatable therewith for contact with scrap, and

(f) means rotating the shaft and push arm in synchronization with the reciprocatory motion of the die member.

2. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 1, wherein the arm has an arcuate surface concentric with the shaft, the surface being provided with a cover of resilient fn'ction material.

3. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 1, wherein the said shaft is carried in bearings which are carried on shelves mounted in the frame on either side of the passageway, the shelves being provided with slots extending longitudinally of the passageway to permit adjustment of bearing and shaft position therealong.

4. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 2, wherein the means rotating the shaft includes a drive shaft mounted on the frame, a sprocket wheel mounted on each shaft, a chain connecting the sprocket wheels, and an idler wheel mounted for adjustment to engage the chain and compensate for the adjustment of the position of the shaft.

5. A card cutting machine, comprising (a) a frame having a table with a horizontal surface,

(b) a die member mounted in the frame and capable of vertical reciprocatory motion, the member carrying card-shaped dies and moving them toward engagement with a card sheet lying on the table surface and engagement with card-shaped apertures formed in the table, the apertures being arranged side-by-side in a line extending across the table,

(0) a collating chute underlying the table and having a track with an end located under each aperture, the tracks all terminating in a collecting box, the upper ends of the tracks being arranged side-by-side under the apertures, the lower ends of the tracks being arranged in a row at a right angle to the line of apertures to move cards originating in the apertures from side-by-side relationship to selected collated relationship.

6. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 5, wherein each track consists of two elongated guides having grooves arranged in parallel relationship with the grooves facing each other.

7. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 5, wherein the upper ends of the tracks are arranged side-by-side with their planes in the same vertical plane and the lower ends are arranged in front-to-back relationship with their planes parallel to and spaced from each other.

8. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 5, wherein the collecting box has a hinged cover for ready removal of a set of cut and collated cards.

9. A card cutting machine, comprising (a) a frame having a table with a horizontal surface,

(b) a die member mounted in the frame and capable of reciprocatory motion relative to the table surface for engagement with a card sheet located thereunder, the table surface being elongated and extending away from the die member,

(0) a carriage movable over the table surface toward and away from the die member to advance card sheets seriatim in card dimension increments toward the die member,

(d) drive means operating the die member and the carriage in synchronization, and

(e) dogs hingedly mounted on the carriage pressing downwardly on the table surface and engaging an edge of the card sheet for the advancement thereof.

10. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 9, wherein each of the dogs is provided with a spring to bias it downwardly relative to the carriage.

11. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 9, wherein the hinge position of each dog is individually adjustable relative to the carriage in a direction parallel to the table surface and in the direction of carriage movement.

12. A card cutting machine as recited in claim 9, wherein spring guides are provided on the table adjacent the die member to prevent skewing of the card sheet.

13. A card cutting machine, comprising (a) a frame,

(b) a die member mounted in the frame and capable of reciprocatory motion, the member carrying dies and moving them toward engagement with a card sheet which is to be punched,

(c) a push pad mounted in each die and capable of movement relative thereto from a first position in which the pad is recessed in the die to a second position in which the pad extends outwardly from the die, the pads being mounted on a plate which is capable of motion relative to the die member, there being a pair of pneumatic linear actuators extending between the plate and the die member to produce the said motion,

((1) means for moving the pad from the first position to the second position a short time after the die makes contact with the sheet, and

(e) an air supply system associated with the pneumatic linear actuators, the flow of air to the actuators being References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS Otto 83165 X McDonald 83-278 X Thomsen 83-136 Rosenthal 83278 X Anderson 83278 X Griswold 83126 X WILLIAM W. DYER, JR., Primary Examiner.

20 I. M. MEISTER, Assistant Examiner. 

5. A CARD CUTTING MACHINE, COMPRISING (A) A FRAME HAVING A TABLE WITH A HORIZONTAL SURFACE, (B) A DIE MEMBER MOUNTED IN THE FRAME AND CAPABLE OF VERTICAL RECIPROCATORY MOTION, THE MEMBER CARRYING CARD-SHAPED DIES AND MOVING THEM TOWARD ENGAGEMENT WITH A CARD SHEET LYING ON THE TABLE SURFACE AND ENGAGEMENT WITH CARD-SHAPED APERTURES FORMED IN THE TABLE, THE APERTURES BEING ARRANGED SIDE-BY-SIDE IN A LINE EXTENDING ACROSS THE TABLE, (C) A COLLATING CHUTE UNDERLYING THE TABLE AND HAVING A TRACK WITH AN END LOCATED UNDER EACH APERTURE, THE TRACKS ALL TERMINATING IN A COLLECTING BOX, THE UPPER ENDS OF THE TRACKS BEING ARRANGED SIDE-BY-SIDE UNDER THE APERTURES, THE LOWER ENDS OF THE TRACKS BEING ARRANGED IN A ROW AT A RIGHT ANGLE TO THE LINE OF APERTURES TO MOVE CARDS ORIGINATING IN THE APERTURES FROM SIDE-BY-SIDE RELATIONSHIP TO SELECTED COLLATED RELATIONSHIP. 